Metal conduits, such as gas, water and oil pipelines, can fail due to age, fatigue, corrosion, abuse, neglect and when used in the environment, natural forces that can fracture or rupture the pipe. There have been many attempts in the past to provide an effective method to stopper or plug a broken conduit, such as a pipe, carrying a gas, water or oil, in order to permit repairs to be made to the broken conduit. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,919 describes inflatable stoppers that can be placed in a pipeline and inflated in order to stop gas flowing through a pipeline while repairing the pipeline. U.S. Pat. No. 6,568,429 describes inflatable plugs that can be used to isolate defined sections of a conduit. U.S. Pat. No. 4,013,097 describes an apparatus for damming the flow of fluid in a pipeline, where the apparatus contains an inflatable bladder. The device is placed within a pipe and the bladder is inflated, thereby sealing the pipeline.
In some conduits, the pressure of the contents in the conduit is high, and inflatable bladders would be insufficient to plug a broken pipe. For example, deep sea oil wells exhibit a high pressure at the wellhead. U.S. Pat. No. 7,121,344 describes a system for installing a plug in a sub-sea wellhead. U.S. Pat. No. RE36,244 describes an apparatus for plugging a burning or gushing well. The apparatus includes a hollow tubular plug body sized for insertion into the well casing. The plug body is inserted into the well casing and locked in place by actuating a retainer module. A seal is then formed between the peripheral surface of the plug body and the well casing. The hollow internal passageway of the tubular plug body is closed by operation of a valve assembly, thereby plugging the pipe. Placement of the plug body requires a gantry assembly upon which the plug body is suspended above the well casing. U.S. Pat. No. 7,036,598 describes an intervention module for well intervention operations in a pressurized sub-sea well with a wellhead disposed on the sea floor. The drawbacks of these and other known intervention systems include the time and cost connected with known well intervention techniques, and in particular in connection with intervention in sub-sea wells, and the possible fracture or damage of the pipe by misaligned placement of the plug body.
Accordingly, a need exists for methodologies and devices that allow for plugging or stopping the flow of a fluid through a conduit with minimized loss of structural integrity of the conduit. It is, among the objects herein, to provide such methodologies and devices and systems for plugging or stopping the flow of a fluid through a conduit.